The market extended its rally into the third straight day, with the BSE Sensex striking a fresh intra-day high of 13,726.62 at the fag end of trading.
The 30-shares BSE Sensex settled 236.60 points (1.76%) higher, at 13,708.34; its intra-day low being 13,490.77.
The S&P CNX Nifty rose (1.79%) to 3,940.50.
The market-breadth was strong, as buying continued for small-cap and mid-cap shares. On BSE, there were over 1.7 gainers for every loser. Against 1,644 shares that advanced, 956 declined and 76 remained unchanged. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 84 points, or 1.3%, to 6,805.56, while the BSE Mid-Cap index ended at 5,697.69, up 48.92 points, or 0.9%, from its previous close.
The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 3,051 crore.
Among the 30-Sensex pack, 26 advanced while the rest had declined.
IT stocks saw renewed buying in anticipation of a robust set of December quarter results. Wipro was the top gainer, up 4.69% to Rs 599.95, on a volume of 1.90 lakh shares.
Other IT shares - TCS (up 3.45% to Rs 1,191) and Satyam Computers (up 3% to Rs 476) had also gained.
IT bellwether Infosys Technologies rose 2.33% to Rs 2,222.15, after it scheduled a board meeting on 11 January 2007, to consider Q3 December 2006 results on 11 January 2007. It is also believed to be in talks with ten global banks for its banking software – Finacle.
ITC jumped 3.04% to Rs 174.80, after the FMCG major said it had struck an agro-alliance with Marubeni Corp, a Japanese trading house. Under the alliance, both companies will consider joint exports of Indian-made soyabean cake and maize grains for livestock feed, Marubeni said in a statement. The tie-up is aimed at expanding the trade of food and other agricultural products between India and Japan.
PSU oil exploration major ONGC advanced 2.80% to Rs 889.50. Media reports have surfaced about the PSU finding oil in Assam and ONGC Videsh bagging 28% stake in a Libyan oil well. The company has declared an interim dividend of 180%, its highest ever, for the ongoing fiscal.
PSU engineering company BHEL rose 1.53% to Rs 2,236.30, amid reports that it is in talks with global players such as GE and Siemens, and may invest up to Rs 500 crore to expand nuclear production capacities.
Tata Motors advanced 2.78% to Rs 883.15, on a volume of 3.37 lakh shares, while the State Bank of India (SBI) gained 2.36% to Rs 1,242.70 on a volume of 3.42 lakh shares.
Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) was up 0.52% to Rs 1,278, on a volume of 4.35 lakh shares.
Hero Honda was the top loser, down 0.62% to Rs 745, on 1.06 lakh shares. It had slipped to a low of Rs 737.
Among side-counters, Genus Overseas Electronics sprung 9.33% to Rs 218, after it won a Rs 75 crore order for single phase and three phase electronic energy meters. The Rajasthan State Electricity Board has asked Genus Overseas Electronics to supply single phase and three phase electronic energy meters.
Low cost airline Deccan Aviation surged 3.61% to Rs 129.05, after its board approved allotment of 19.63 lakh equity shares of Rs 10 each to Investec Bank (UK), London, at Rs 150 per share.
Textile firm S Kumar's Nationwide was down 0.76% to Rs 73.35, after the company said its board will meet on 30 December 2006, to consider spinning off the retail business.
Software firm Four Soft rose 2.10% to Rs 71.30, after its board agreed to raise $70 million through an issue of depository receipts, bonds and debentures.
Simplex Infrastructures gained 5.29% to Rs 395, after the company said it had bagged orders worth Rs 825 crore.
Shriram City Union Finance advanced 3.23% to Rs 160, after it sold 40 lakh shares at Rs 160 each to Indopark Holdings on a preferential basis.
Arihant Foundations rose 3.35% to Rs 512, while Hind Rectifies surged 7.30% to Rs 950 after they were admitted for dealing on National Stock Exchange (NSE) today.
The Nikkei share average rose 0.45%, or 76.30 points, to 17,169.19, its highest close in seven and half months on Tuesday, as Fast Retailing Co. rose after government data showed a slower-than-expected fall in personal consumption in November.
India's central bank, on Friday, allowed up to 49% foreign investment in stock exchanges, paving the way for New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to expand into Asia's best performing markets.
The Reserve Bank of India also said that foreigners could hold up to 49% in depositories and clearing corporations.
Under the new rules, foreign direct investment will be limited at 26%, while foreign portfolio investments would be capped at 23% in all such entities, the central bank said. It, however, said portfolio investments will be allowed only through the secondary market. The stock exchange also plans to list its shares on its own trading floor.
Recently, media reports suggested New York Stock Exchange was eager to pick up a stake in the BSE.
The Japanese nationwide core consumer price index rose 0.2% on year in December, government data showed Tuesday, registering the sixth straight month of increases. The results, which exclude volatile food prices, outpaced the 0.1% growth in the previous month, according to data released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
The core CPI for the Tokyo metropolitan area for December considered a leading indicator for nationwide consumer prices, rose 0.2% from a year earlier, according to the ministry data. The figure matches the 0.2% rise expected in the survey of economists.
The overall Japan-wide CPI, including fresh food prices, climbed 0.3% on year in November, but down 0.3% compared with the previous month, according to the data. For the Tokyo area, the overall CPI gained 0.3% in December from a year earlier. It was up 0.1% from November.
Volatility is expected to remain high on the domestic bourses ahead of the expiry of December futures contracts on 28 December 2006 (Thursday). Participation by FIIs is also expected to remain low as most fund managers will have proceeded on a Christmas vacation, which will last till the New Year.
The Dow Jones had closed at 12,343.22, down 0.63%, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq had lost 0.53% and 0.61%, to close at 1,410.76 and 2,401.18, respectively, on 22 December 2006 (Friday).
FIIs were net buyers of equities worth Rs 264.80 crore on the Indian bourses, on 22 December 2006 (Friday). This was a result of purchases worth Rs 1,666.50 crore and offloading to the tune of Rs 1,401.70 crore in the Indian equities market. The country’s premier index, the BSE Sensex, had climbed 87 points on Friday, closing at 13,471.74. NSE’s S&P CNX Nifty rose 37.65 points, to end at 3,871.15, the same day.